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Prison sentence of alleged accomplice of Vadim Cheldiyev extended in North Ossetia

The Leninsky District Court of the city of Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia — Alania extended the arrest term for Arsen Besolov, alleged accomplice of imprisoned opera singer, opposition activist, and conspiracy theorist Vadim Cheldiyev. He was initially imprisoned for 15 days but will stay in prison until 21 July. He is accused of complicity in hooliganism committed by a group with prior conspiracy.

According to the media, Arsen Besolov administrated the telegram-channel ‘Vadim Cheldiyev’, where the organising and preparations for a protest rally against quarantine measures in Vladikavkaz on April 20 were discussed.

EMC: Georgia’s Tetritskaro population without basic medical infrastructure

Tbilisi-based Human Rights Education and Monitoring Centre (EMC) has warned that residents of Georgia’s Tetritskaro Municipality, 60 km southwest of Georgia’s capital city, are deprived of basic medical infrastructure. 

According to EMC, over 20,000 residents in Tetritskaro District of Kvemo Kartli, one of the regions most hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak, have access to just one hospital with outpatient services only and two pharmacies. 

In late April, Tetritskaro became a hotspot of COVID-19 infection. 

Daghestani Health Minister calls on medical volunteers to fight COVID-19

The Minister of Health of Daghestan, Dzhamaludin Gadzhiibragimov, participated in a campaign on the Instagram channel Spodvizhniki Dobra (‘Companions of Kindness’) and participated in recording a joint video address.

In it, doctors, public figures, members of charitable organizations, and entrepreneurs urge non-core doctors, nurses, and final year medical students to volunteer and help doctors who are fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

‘Hospitals are crowded with coronavirus patients! There is a catastrophic lack of medical personnel!’ the appeal reads. 

Volunteers can sign up on the Spodvizhniki Dobra Instagram page (@s.dobra_05), and on Whatsapp or by phone at 8-928-554-16-66.

Public transport to start operating on 23 May in Krasnodar Krai

The authorities of Krasnodar Krai report that, if a ‘stable epidemiological situation’ is maintained, public transport in cities and municipalities will return to ‘normal working hours’ from 23 May.

Travel between the borders of different municipalities will still be subject to restrictions.

North Ossetia receives $3.4 million from Russian government

North Ossetia – Alania has received ₽250 million ($3.4 million) from the reserve fund of the Russian government for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19, the Minister of Health of the region Tamerlan Gogichayev said today at the meeting of the regional government.

A psycho-neurological institution is evacuated in Stavropol Krai

Today, Stavropol Krai organised the transport of all patients and employees of the Novoselitsky psycho-neurological institution from the village of Chernolesskoye to the Solnechnodolsk settlement, after the media published appeals made by the institution’s staff.

The asylum, where 50 patients live, has been quarantined since 26 April, when a number of patients were confirmed as having COVID-19.

Since then, 22 people have been diagnosed with the virus, and medical staff have been complaining about a lack of medicine and personal protective equipment, as well as the refusal of local hospitals to admit patients of the institution who have severe COVID-19 symptoms.

The employees also complained that they had been tested for COVID-19 twice already, but that no one had told them the results.

However, the move has seemingly not addressed the complaints made by the staff. A video uploaded today apparently shows the new location of the institution in Solnechnodolsk to be dilapidated, conditions which the video title refers to as ‘nightmarish’.

The Governor of the Stavropol Krai Vladimir Vladimirov has ordered an internal investigation in connection with the situation.

Krasnodar Krai will open its health resorts on 1 June

In Krasnodar Krai, if a ‘stable epidemiological situation’ is maintained, regional health resorts will start operating again on 1 June.

‘Guests should remember that they are coming to a health resort, and not to a spa-resort. Beaches and public places will be closed. Tourists will only stay on the territory of the health resort,’ the announcement on the website of the regional administration reads.

Krasnodar Krai authorities have also reduced rents on state-owned land that has been leased or private individuals or organisations for the purposes of tourism by 50% in 2020. The ‘resort fee’ paid by tourists has been suspended until 1 January 2021.

Armenian PM urges Armenians to stay vigilant 

During his Facebook video broadcast this morning, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan warned the public that with the current pace and rate of new COVID-19 cases, the government may have to reintroduce some mandatory social isolation measures to fight the outbreak. 

Pashinyan urged citizens to observe COVID-19 safety practices, including social distancing. 

Armenian medical authorities registered 180 new cases of COVID-19 within the last 24 hours.

Summary

Welcome to OC Media’s coronavirus live updates for Wednesday, 13 May. We will be bringing you the latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic from around the Caucasus.

The biggest developments from yesterday:

Several regions of the North Caucasus extended their lockdown restrictions, after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the country would begin to open up but left individual measures up to local governments. 

The heads of Karachay-Cherkessia, North Ossetia, Ingushetia, and Daghestan all announced they would extend their lockdowns. 

Thirty thousand ‘Dutch-made’ COVID-19 rapid antibody tests purchased by the Government of Georgia were actually relabelled tests produced in China, OC Media revealed.

Doubts have also been raised about whether the accuracy of the tests, sold by Dutch biotechnology firm Inzek, match Inzek’s claims.

Read the full story: ‘Dutch-made’ rapid tests sold to Georgia were relabelled Chinese tests

Georgia also announced a ₾300 million ($94 million) agricultural assistance plan, which they the government said would benefit 200,000 farmers.

Read the latest stories:

• ‘Dutch-made’ rapid tests sold to Georgia were relabelled Chinese tests
• Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh ‘vulnerable to COVID-19 pandemic’
• Georgia plans corona-safe ‘tourist zones’
• South Ossetia confirms first three coronavirus cases
• Protests in Azerbaijan over job losses and unpaid leave
• Critical shortages‘ of protective equipment reported in Daghestan’s hospitals
• Transgender woman sets herself on fire in Tbilisi
• Voice | The women on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic
• Farmers in Georgia’s Marneuli protest inability to sell crops 
• Police clash with anti-stay-at-home protesters in North Ossetia 
• In pictures | Life under quarantine in Gyumri
• Georgian social workers forced to pay for taxis to visit domestic abuse victims